Hackers take down Egyptian government websites

Hackers took down a dozen Egyptian government websites in what appears to be an orchestrated distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack.

The presidential website and the bureau for tourism are among the sites that had been affected by the cyber attack.

The hacktivist group Anonymous has claimed responsibility for the attack on at least one Brazilian operations page, saying the attacks are in response to the treatment of protesters in Egypt.

Footage was released Sunday that showed Egyptian military police firing ammunition into crowds of people. Some officers chased down a woman and beat her repeatedly in the middle of the street.

The protesters are demanding that the military regime that took control of the government after they ousted president Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak hand the state over to the people so they can begin democratic elections.

The generals involved have refused to do so, but said they would likely agree sometime in 2012.

More than a dozen protesters have been either shot or beaten to death. Hundreds of others were reported to have been wounded.